Central Asia's declining fruit and nut forests

Central Asia's declining fruit and nut forests

Several of the world's fruit and nut trees - wild ancestors of the fruits we eat today - are seriously threatened with extinction, according to a new "red list" released by tree experts from
Fauna & Flora International. Many of these species occur in the unique fruit and nut forests of central Asia - an estimated 90% of which have been destroyed in the past 50 years

Thursday 7 May 2009 09.49 EDT
First published on Thursday 7 May 2009 09.49 EDT

The "red list" of trees of central Asia identifies 44 tree species in Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan as globally threatened with extinction

A bowl of local fruit and nuts in Kyrgyzstan. Central Asia is home to over 300 wild fruit and nut species, including wild apple, plum, cherry, apricot, walnut and many other important food trees from which domesticated varieties are thought to originate

Stewed apple and local bread - a harvest time lunch in Kyrgyzstan. It is believed that many of the fruit and nut trees familiar in cultivation today were domesticated from these forests, and were then distributed by people along the Silk Road long ago

Kyrgyz walnuts - one with its green shell and the other once peeled. Owing to the often fragmented, mountainous geography of the landscape, these plants display exceptionally high genetic diversity, which could prove vital in the development of new disease-resistant or climate-tolerant fruit varieties. This could be of huge importance to future food security as the global climate changes

A wild cherry species growing in the fruit and nut forests of Kyrgyzstan. Dr Antonia Eastwood, lead author of red list, said: "Central Asia's forests are a vital storehouse for wild fruit and nut trees. If we lose the genetic diversity these forests contain, the future security of these foods could be jeopardised, especially in the face of unknown changes in global climate"

Berberis kaschgarica, also known as barberry, is one of the threatened species identified by the red list. The FFI report identifies overexploitation, human development, pests and diseases, overgrazing, desertification and fires as the main threats to the trees and forests in central Asia

The striking red-fleshed Niedzwetzky apple is one of world's most threatened tree species, says Fauna & Flora International. Domestic apples are now known to be derived from the wild species
Malus sieversii 3, which is native to central Asia and is identified as threatened in the report

Pyrus korshinskyi- a pear species identified as critically endangered. Lack of financial resources and infrastructure since the break-up of the Soviet Union has also had a negative impact on the fruit and nut forests of the region